Why Individuals Can Be Better than Teams | Sean Warrington | Superclusters | S5E3

May 5, 2025

Sean Warrington, who leads private market investing at the $10 billion Gresham Partners, shares his insights on investment strategies. He emphasizes that great investments often require a unique perspective rather than just metrics. Sean discusses the significance of personal relationships in investment, the importance of understanding individual talents in teams, and how LPs should appreciate the value of solo GPs. His candid feedback approach aims to simplify the fundraising process, making it more relatable and effective for GPs.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

ANECDOTE

Sean's First Investment Experience

Sean Warrington's first investment was in a 2015 China spin-out VC fund led by confident and local young GPs.
They left significant carry money on the table, betting on themselves and later found success with a key breakout investment.

ADVICE

Avoid FOMO, Act with Conviction

Avoid FOMO-driven investments just because timelines are fast or others invest.
If convinced on a manager, invest early and fast, balancing risk and reward thoughtfully.

ADVICE

Frameworks for Sizing Emerging Funds

Use fund size and check size frameworks to evaluate emerging funds carefully.
Align check size with realistic deal activity to avoid slow no's and focus diligence where it matters.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

“Some of the best investments, as we look back in history, were never obvious at the moment the investments were made. You may not have to be contrarian, but you have to have a variant perception than the rest of the market. Maybe you saw the team differently. You saw the space growing differently. That, to us, inherently, is a single decision maker-type thought process at the earliest stage, when it’s less about metrics. It’s more about how you evaluate the talent and the team.” – Sean Warrington

Sean Warrington leads private market investing at Gresham Partners, a $10 billion multi-family office based in Chicago. Known for being a transparent and user-friendly LP, he and the Gresham team aim to simplify the fundraising process — offering single-check investments, a streamlined diligence process, and prompt, candid feedback to GPs.

You can find Sean on his socials here:X / Twitter: https://x.com/srwarringtonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/srwarrington/

OUTLINE:

[00:00] Intro

[03:29] Who is Jeff French?

[05:26] The metrics for success for a junior LP

[07:20] The 3 chapters of Sean's evolution as an LP

[11:05] Sean's first investment

[14:44] When GPs put LPs on strict timelines

[16:53] One archetype of GP that Sean is excited about

[19:37] What it looks like to be thoughtful when growing AUM

[23:16] What most LPs don't understand about solo GPs

[25:58] What happens when a GP leaves a partnership

[27:33] The definition of LP/GP alignment

[30:47] Reference archetypes and how to find them

[35:32] How to manage bandwidths in a small team

[38:58] Frameworks for taking calls

[42:26] How much does Sean travel?

[43:25] Why coffee chats don't work

[45:30] What Sean's changed his mind on about investing

[47:12] What did Jason Kelce's retirement mean to Sean?

[49:36] Post-credit scene

Follow David Zhou for more Superclusters content:For podcast show notes: https://cupofzhou.com/superclustersFollow David Zhou's blog: https://cupofzhou.comFollow Superclusters on X: https://x.com/SuperclustersLP